The Complete VST Amp Sim List!

[kilroy]

Can I hear an MP3 of something in style of SRV or Hendrix? Not too distorted but clean with a glassy tube sound.

How about having a go at it yourself?


Seriously, I think any *real* guitar player could spot subtle differences between the real thing and a simulation, even a very good one. But the question is, do these little differences make the product unusable in the context of musical creativity?

Bad writing kills more tracks than any amp sim *ever* will.

I don't disagree with anything that you said. In fact, I think you are totally right.

I still think, though, that the amp sims that are currently out are unable to create an authentic tube tone.

Well, I can't argue that. And what of all the quaint rattles, buzzing and other lovely cabinet vibrations? Very poorly modeled in software, that.

Anyroad, here is a fatish blues tone I lashed up for your consideration...minus the real tube gloss you were wanting, but a useable tone never the less. I prefer sounds with good mid range torque.

http://www.headroomproductions.com/Audio/Blues_wet.mp3

and sans the live room...

http://www.headroomproductions.com/Audi ... _dryer.mp3


I work with alot of guitarists, and I always, *always* take a direct line when tracking them. Having the option to re-amp later on is a beautiful thing, and often I simply use software for the ease and convenience. Many times the complementary tones of good amp sims and tasteful programing make big layered guitars sit tighter in a mix than repeated passes with real amps.


But yeah...long live tubes.

[sXeSkiddz2005]

Yea, i agree, maybe they dont sound right on but they're usable and fun. Most people seem to hate Guitar Rigs high gain amps, but ive made some presets in GR that are all high gain and yea have some noise but i still think they have killer sound to them. definatly viscious sounding wich is how i like it . i dont really care for that crystal clear gain as much, i like to play metal with some feedback in the sound and the gain cranked up, it gives it a very viscious sound that i like, and for that Guitar Rig is great, when i dont want all the feedback and such i have a digitech "Grunge" pedal and a "Metal" stompbox as well as several other overdrives and distortions that work great for that.

[AndrewSimon]

I think some of the Amp Sims are amazing.
I also believe that in the next 5-10 years these Sims will be able to emulate any amp to perfection.
And then the developers will start creating new plugs that are better and impossible to create with hardware.
And then.... hardware manufacturers will start integrating software modeling in hardware.

[sXeSkiddz2005]

I think some of the Amp Sims are amazing.
I also believe that in the next 5-10 years these Sims will be able to emulate any amp to perfection.
And then the developers will start creating new plugs that are better and impossible to create with hardware.
And then.... hardware manufacturers will start integrating software modeling in hardware.

AND THEN WE'RE ALL DOOMED BECAUSE SOFTWARE WILL TAKE OVER THE WORLD!!!! EEEEEEEEEEEEEKKKKKKKK!!!!!!

[Sascha Franck]

I think there's mainly two things were amp simulators still fall short:
- Guitar-Amp-interaction. Tones usually don't clean up nicely when you pull down the volume or pick lower. Especially true for stuff using higher gain.
- That deep, sorta NuMetal "Chugga Chugga" sound. Tight, quite some overdrive, cutting through.

[AndrewSimon]

- Guitar-Amp-interaction. Tones usually don't clean up nicely when you pull down the volume or pick lower.

Is this the influence of the GTR video bragging about how the amp cleans up at low volume?
Because I am not impressed with that marketing line.
I can get the same results with Amplitube and Simulanalog JCM900.
(Maybe it's because of my DI, tube preamp and a compressor)

Especially true for stuff using higher gain.

I don't see how this clean up business is useful with high gain settings.
It is only useful with a slightly driven blues type sound where you slide back and forth from clean to slightly dirty by picking soft and hard (btw I love playing this style).

[WoJ]

So wat exactly is a solid state amp?? What kind of hardware is in one?

I have a line 6 flextone and its a modeling amp, so im pretty sure its based on the Pod or the vetta, so isnt line6 already implamenting software into hardware?

[james0tucson]

You can't kick an amp sim and get a reverb crash.

[james0tucson]

Can I hear an MP3 of something in style of SRV or Hendrix? Not too distorted but clean with a glassy tube sound.

How about having a go at it yourself?


Seriously, I think any *real* guitar player could spot subtle differences between the real thing and a simulation, even a very good one. But the question is, do these little differences make the product unusable in the context of musical creativity?

Bad writing kills more tracks than any amp sim *ever* will.

I don't disagree with anything that you said. In fact, I think you are totally right.

I still think, though, that the amp sims that are currently out are unable to create an authentic tube tone.

Maybe one day they will.....and I look forward to the day that they do.

For about $500 you should be able to get a Vibrolux or maybe a Twin, something big enough to play any club. All you need is your strat, maybe a stomp box and a wah, and that amp. It'll be reliable as hell. And it will sound right, without having to fiddle with it.

There are so many styles where a mild feedback loop is part of the instrument. I know that's fairly well simulated in software, in terms of *tone*, but it's *not* the same in terms of playing it live.

An amp sim is nice to have, I say. Which one gives a convincing simulation of a Fender Deluxe on a stage at a street festival, that's been miked from 30 meters away? Which one sounds like a Rivera in an old movie theatre? Which one sounds like a Vox on a boat dock?

[james0tucson]

So wat exactly is a solid state amp?? What kind of hardware is in one?

DC power supply, one or more transistor preamps, a transistor power amp, and a speaker. Sometimes there's a lot more; some even digitize the input signal and do some of the work with logic.

A transistor amplifier is a non-linear *current* amp, which require a certain amount of energy devoted to feedback loops for correction. This is the main reason that a transistor amp will be less efficient than a tube amp at the same wattage rating.

A tube amplifier is a *voltage* amp, is more linear, and requires less energy devoted ot a feedback loop. A whole different world, from the considerations of the power supply to the load at the speaker terminals. Big tube amps work with huge ambient voltages, which makes it "easy" to design a circuit with wide dynamic response.

For a guitar player in particular, this is perceived directly. Tube amps and transistor amps each have their benefits, to be certain, but the dynamic behavior of a well-designed tube amp is something that a guitarist will crave once he's learned to work it, and it's something that he will sorely miss in all but the most expensive solid state amps.

There are stylistic and aesthetic considerations to consdier also. A lot of musical styles are played in clip, and in a tube amplifier, the clip/overload sets in gradually, with a low even-ordered harmonic. High distortion level is perceived as an inoffensive artifact of the sound -- a purely aesthetic observation, but a very important one.

A solid state amplifier should never be played to overload or clip at all. It will clip into an exponentially increasing odd-order harmonic, which is not desirable at all aesthetically, and very bad for the output circuit (it quickly approximates a square wave).

So you don't overdrive a transistor amp like you do a tube amp. Instead, you put something artificial into your signal path, like an effects box or an amp simulator that attempts to simulate the sonic characteristics of a tube amp in clip (for example), but all the amplifiers in the path are operating within their actual tolerances.

In some ways this is a very good compromise.

I like the simplicity of plugging my guitar into my Deluxe and turning the gain stage up. The fact that this amp would be big enough to play any gig, even a festival stage or a large club, is a bonus. The output of an amp sim, or a software emulation and the output of a PC sound card, would require a relatively enormous amp and speaker to accomplish the same results that my humble little Deluxe can deliver just by turning on the switch.

Now, I'm probably thinking much more in terms of playing live than recording. For recording, there are many situations where an amp sim might be preferable to using an amp. But for playing live, it takes an amp several times the power to deliver comparable results, and you still lose some aspects of the amp being part of the instrument. Not a consideration for some styles, but I wouldn't expect a blues player to be happy with a laptop, amplitube, a transistor power amp, and a club speaker. I don't even know how you'd go about explaining that this is a better plan than the good old amp. You want to try to explain this to Buddy Guy?

[WoJ]

Ah cheers james

I've never actualy played a tube amp, so i dont realy have first hand experiance but i will do one day.

I think i'd still opt for an amp sim when recording, just because i want the sound to be straight "in the mix" rather than having to record a speaker and then by the time you've processed it all i doubt many people would be able to tell the difference unless its a lead guitar or right up front in the mix.

edit: forgot to say that this list is great!!!

[kilroy]

I think there's mainly two things were amp simulators still fall short:
- Guitar-Amp-interaction. Tones usually don't clean up nicely when you pull down the volume or pick lower. Especially true for stuff using higher gain.
- That deep, sorta NuMetal "Chugga Chugga" sound. Tight, quite some overdrive, cutting through.

Kinda like...

http://www.headroomproductions.com/Audi ... Chugga.mp3


...or something?

[kilroy]

You can't kick an amp sim and get a reverb crash.

And you can't stand next to it and feel the air blowing on yer pant legs.

[rpc9943]

the thing about amp sims is that they dont necessarily need guitars. thats the cool part. I mean I personally record clients w/ real mic'd amps... if i want to do some crazy vocal /drum effects, where else do i turn but to amp sims!

RonC

[audiojunkie]

Ok, I found another one. This one is called "Tube Amp Factory," and it's apparently only going to be free for a limited time. The address is: www.floridamusicco.com

It even comes with a bank of presets and a standalone version.

--Sean

P.S. Maybe the amps list could be alphabetized. Since the list is getting long, I'm starting to have a hard time checking if the amps I find are already listed on the list or not.